Delaware 152nd General Assembly (2023-2024) Status: Enacted Bipartisan · 2 D · 1 R cosponsors

HB 53 — AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.

Last action — Signed by Governor

  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. ✓
    In Committee
  3. ✓
    Passed House
  4. ✓
    Passed Senate
  5. ✓
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced January 18, 2023. Enacted.

Prognosis

Likely to advance 92% · high confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

High

How often bills like it became law.

  • Enacted

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 3 sponsors

    3 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

  • Bipartisan support

    Sponsored across 2 parties (2 D · 1 R) — cross-party backing.

  • Cleared a recorded vote

    Passed 2 recorded votes so far.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Summary

This bill removes the requirement that a head or assistant head of any Division of the State Department of Justice or the Chief Prosecutor of a particular county be a resident of the State of Delaware.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

16 added · 19 removed

16 line(s) added, 19 removed.

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Griffith HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 152nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE AMENDMENT NO.
Griffith & Sen.
1 TO HOUSE BILL NO.
Gay Rep.
53 AMEND House Bill No.
K.
53 by striking lines 4 through 7 in their entirety and inserting in lieu thereof the following:
Williams HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES 152nd GENERAL ASSEMBLY HOUSE BILL NO.
“(j) The Attorney General may appoint, from the practicing members of the Bar of this State, a lawyer resident in this State who shall be designated as the head or assistant head of any Division of the State Department of Justice, or the Chief Prosecutor of a particular county and who shall serve on a full-time basis under the direct control of the Attorney General.
53 AN ACT TO AMEND TITLE 29 OF THE DELAWARE CODE RELATING TO THE STATE DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF DELAWARE:
Section 1.
Amend § 2505, Title 29 of the Delaware Code by making deletions as shown by strike through and insertions as shown by underline as follows:
§ 2505.
Chief Deputy, State Solicitor, State Prosecutor, assistants, special assistants and law clerks.
(j) The Attorney General may appoint, from the practicing members of the Bar of this State, a lawyer resident in this State who shall be designated as the head or assistant head of any Division of the State Department of Justice, or the Chief Prosecutor of a particular county and who shall serve on a full-time basis under the direct control of the Attorney General.
“(j) The Attorney General may appoint from the practicing members of the Bar of this State all of the following who shall serve on a full-time basis under the direct control of the Attorney General and have such responsibilities, powers and duties as the Attorney General shall designate:
SYNOPSIS This bill removes the requirement that a head or assistant head of any Division of the State Department of Justice or the Chief Prosecutor of a particular county be a resident of the State of Delaware.
(1) A lawyer resident in this State who shall be designated as the Chief Prosecutor of a particular county.
(2) A lawyer who shall be designated head or assistant head of any Division of the State Department of Justice.”.
SYNOPSIS This amendment clarifies that the residency requirement applies to the Chief Prosecutor of a particular county and not the head or assistant head of any Division of the Department of Justice.
03/13/2023 10:47 AM 2141520067
01/18/2023 12:45 PM 2141520027
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How this bill changes current law

1 change Share ↗

AI-generated reading aid from the bill's amendatory text — verify against the official bill.

This amendment clarifies the residency requirement for the Chief Prosecutor position and distinguishes it from that of the head or assistant head of any Division of the Department of Justice.

  • the head or assistant head of any Division of the State Department of Justice, or the Chief Prosecutor of a particular county and who shall serve on a full-time basis under the direct control of the Attorney General. → all of the following who shall serve on a full-time basis under the direct control of the Attorney General and have such responsibilities, powers and duties as the Attorney General shall designate: (1) A lawyer resident in this State who shall be designated as the Chief Prosecutor of a particular county. (2) A lawyer who shall be designated head or assistant head of any Division of the State Department of Justice.

    The amendment specifies that only the Chief Prosecutor must be a resident of the state, while the head or assistant head of a Division does not have that requirement.

Action History

  1. Signed by Governor

  2. Passed By Senate. Votes: 15 YES 6 NO

  3. Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in Senate with 1 Favorable, 4 On Its Merits, 1 Unfavorable

  4. Assigned to Judiciary Committee in Senate

  5. Passed By House. Votes: 39 YES 2 ABSENT

  6. Amendment HA 1 to HB 53 - Passed In House by Voice Vote

  7. Amendment HA 1 to HA 1 - Defeated By House. Votes: 8 YES 29 NO 2 NOT VOTING 2 ABSENT

  8. Amendment HA 1 to HA 1 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  9. Amendment HA 1 to HB 53 - Introduced and Placed With Bill

  10. Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in House with 6 On Its Merits

  11. Reported Out of Committee (Judiciary) in House with 6 On Its Merits

  12. Introduced and Assigned to Judiciary Committee in House

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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3 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 59 not signed on · 5 voted No

Sponsors (3)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (59)

59 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 59 →

"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

Votes

SM

Passed 15 Yea · 6 Nay
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 13000
Republican 0600
Unaffiliated 2000
Total 15600
% of votes cast 71%29%0%0%
How each member voted (21)
Member Party Vote
Kyle Evans Gay — Yea
Sarah McBride — Yea
Bryan Townsend Democratic Yea
Darius J. Brown Democratic Yea
David P. Sokola Democratic Yea
John "Jack" Walsh Democratic Yea
Kyra L. Hoffner Democratic Yea
Laura V. Sturgeon Democratic Yea
Marie Pinkney Democratic Yea
Nicole Poore Democratic Yea
Russell Huxtable Democratic Yea
S. Elizabeth Lockman Democratic Yea
Spiros Mantzavinos Democratic Yea
Stephanie L. Hansen Democratic Yea
Trey Paradee Democratic Yea
Brian Pettyjohn Republican Nay
Bryant L. Richardson Republican Nay
Dave G. Lawson Republican Nay
David L. Wilson Republican Nay
Eric Buckson Republican Nay
Gerald W. Hocker Republican Nay

Official roll call →

SM

Passed 39 Yea · 0 Nay · 2 Other
Party YeaNayPresentNot Voting
Democratic 19001
Republican 13000
Unaffiliated 7001
Total 39002
% of votes cast 95%0%0%5%
How each member voted (41)
Member Party Vote
Michael Ramone — Yea
Paul S. Baumbach — Yea
Peter C. Schwartzkopf — Yea
Ruth Briggs King — Yea
Sean Matthews — Yea
Sherry Dorsey Walker — Yea
Stell Parker Selby — Not Voting
Valerie Longhurst — Yea
Cyndie Romer Democratic Yea
DeShanna U Neal Democratic Yea
Debra Heffernan Democratic Yea
Edward S. Osienski Democratic Yea
Eric Morrison Democratic Yea
Franklin D. Cooke Democratic Yea
Kendra Johnson Democratic Yea
Kerri Evelyn Harris Democratic Yea
Kimberly Williams Democratic Yea
Krista Griffith Democratic Yea
Larry Lambert Democratic Yea
Madinah Wilson-Anton Democratic Yea
Melissa Minor-Brown Democratic Yea
Nnamdi O. Chukwuocha Democratic Yea
Sean M. Lynn Democratic Yea
Sherae'a Moore Democratic Yea
Sophie Phillips Democratic Yea
Stephanie T. Bolden Democratic Not Voting
William Bush Democratic Yea
William J. Carson Democratic Yea
Bryan W. Shupe Republican Yea
Charles S Postles Jr. Republican Yea
Daniel B. Short Republican Yea
Jeff Hilovsky Republican Yea
Jeffrey N. Spiegelman Republican Yea
Jesse R. Vanderwende Republican Yea
Kevin S Hensley Republican Yea
Lyndon D. Yearick Republican Yea
Michael F. Smith Republican Yea
Richard G. Collins Republican Yea
Ronald E. Gray Republican Yea
Shannon Morris Republican Yea
Timothy D. Dukes Republican Yea

Official roll call →

Subjects

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Frequently asked questions

What does HB 53 do?
This bill removes the requirement that a head or assistant head of any Division of the State Department of Justice or the Chief Prosecutor of a particular county be a resident of the State of Delaware.
Who sponsors HB 53?
HB 53 is sponsored by Brian Pettyjohn (Republican), Kendra Johnson (Democratic), and Krista Griffith (Democratic).
What is the current status of HB 53?
This bill has been enacted into law. Introduced January 18, 2023. Enacted.
Where can I track HB 53?
Track HB 53 free on One Click Politics — get push/email alerts when it moves.

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